


Bittersweet

by orphan_account



Category: Jrock, the GazettE
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dystopia, M/M, One-Sided Attraction, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Relationship(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-27
Updated: 2019-05-12
Packaged: 2019-12-25 13:03:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18261845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: We’re not like those sweet ones on the other side. We can't live sweetly. We have to live bitterly. It's how things are supposed to be.**This work is on hiatus. I am not sure if I will continue it or not





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'M BACK!  
> Using a prompt that I actually came up with on my own :,) 
> 
> I hope this goes well
> 
> Oh and
> 
> I LOVE YOU. <3

The hard rocks on the soil should be hurting the man’s bare feet. Leave them raw, red, and pulsating. Especially at the fast speed in which he was sprinting through the forest of dead trees. Nevertheless, his calloused feet were used to this kind of harsh treatment. They’ve never suffocated; never been covered into darkness. And Reita liked it that way. It kept him grounded to the earth, and gave him a false feeling of complete freedom. Even though he wasn’t actually free. The world rejected him as an infant, and threw him into a dumpster of a place. It wasn’t his fault that he was born blind in his right eye. It left a constant bitter taste in his mouth. The world was cruel. 

 

Damn, he forgot about that one horizontal tree branch planted right into the soil. Before Reita could even think, his feet tripped over the offending branch, and he came crashing down like an american football. He must be part of some sort of bad luck club. Not only did he trip, but he toppled over right against the tall, glass structure that he initially came here to see. His cheek hit the glass so hard, he was lucky it didn’t knock any of his teeth out. That was definitely gonna leave a bruise. Oh well, he was used to pain like this. 

 

Gently rubbing his now aching cheek, Reita stood in front of the huge structure in awe. There it was. Another world. One that was way better than his own. He placed his hand onto the cool, thick glass. It was like a giant fish bowl, but instead of water and fish, there was clean air and happy people. Actually, it was rather more comparable to a snowglobe. The dome was supported by a square pedestal that was about one foot tall. 

Inside the giant glass dome structure, everything seemed brighter. There was actual grass, unlike the plain, brown soil he was limited to. Pink, lush grass that Reita’s feet were just aching to be tickled by. He could see healthy, pink-leafed trees that bore fresh fruit-- a luxury that was forbidden here. And in the far distance, if he looked far enough, he thought he could see a small gingerbread house. A house that didn’t look run down and old like the building he was forced to call home. He wished he could see more of this land. One day, he tried to run as far as he could around the dome hoping to see something new. But surrounding the glass was nothing but forest, he concluded. They must really like their privacy, huh. 

 

Or maybe not everyone. Reita didn’t come here again to ogle what was inside the glass structure. He’s done that how many times now? Too many times to count on fingers. The real reason Reita was here, in this secluded dead forest, was to see what kind of gift was left for him this time. 

Glancing around his surroundings, he made sure nobody was following him. _Check._ Anticipation caused him to lick his lips, as he stealthily made his way along the glass, to a small hole. Yes, indeed. Reita never knew how it got created, but there was a small hole in the dome. Big enough to reach a hand through, but small enough so that nobody could squeeze through it. He looked onto the ground, directly below the hole in the glass wall, and his heart skipped a beat.

Yes! They didn’t forget him! Not yet, at least! There on the ground, was a bunch of round, purple fruits. Plums, they were called. Rich in vitamin C, K, and dietary fiber. And sweet. So sweet. He was practically drooling.

Stuffing each of those luxurious fruits into his potato sack, he skipped back to his home like a bouncy, energetic child. Reita was so happy. He was still getting little gifts from the stranger whom lived on the other, happier side. Reita didn’t know who this was. The gender, the age, the height-- he had no idea. He wished he did. Why couldn’t they be less of a coward and show themselves for once? But he was thankful. Oh, so very thankful. 

 

This time, coming home, Reita had a master plan in his mind. Once he arrived back to his small village, he made his way to each of the villager’s houses, and placed one plum in front of their doors. It was getting late, so nobody was out yet. Maybe if they woke up to know of the sweet deliciousness of this fruit, they would be more inclined and motivated to stop living in the bitter shithole that they did. To run away, to rebel, and to get to that better, sweeter place inside of the dome. _Grow some balls_ , he had always thought of the villagers. _Go out and explore for once._ They all deserved so much better than this. 

The last, run-down house was his neighbour’s, Uruha. Said neighbour also doubled as his best friend. He made sure to save the nicest-looking plum for him. As Reita was placing the purple fruit on Uruha’s doorstep, the door suddenly opened. It startled him so much, he dropped the plum, and it bruised and rolled around on the soil. Damnit, and it was such a nice and plump one, too!

Uruha’s clear, straight-forward voice reached his ears, cutting off his mental rant, “Reita? What are you doing here so late? I thought-” it cut off when the brunette’s eyes landed onto the fallen fruit. His eyes widened. “Y-You’re mad! Absolutely nuts! Psycho!” he exclaimed-- exactly three adjectives. “Where did you get that from?!” He scanned Reita, "And is that a _bruise_ I see?!"

Reita couldn’t hold back a chuckle from escaping his lips when Uruha began to sneeze. Something the guy did when he was anxious, and nervous. 

“Stop sneezing, you nervous wreck. And trust me, for once.” He pumped his fist up into the air, “We’re all going to rebel against whoever decided to segregate us like this! And it all starts with the addicting taste of these plums. Once they taste this, they’ll never want to stay here!”

Uruha’s sneezes stopped after a long 33 seconds. “But...But...But fruits are illegal in this place! They’re sweet! We can only eat bitter things here, remember?! We can only live bitterly, too! It’s the law!”   
“Forget about stupid laws,” Reita immediately butt in, gently shoving his friend and forcing himself into Uruha’s home. He tried to ignore the fact that there were many empty beer cans on Uruha’s splintering table, “We’re gonna get out of here and join the sweet way of living, once and for all!” 

Uruha’s eyes narrowed into a glare. His whole demeanor suddenly changed, into one that was quite frankly the opposite of what you’d expect a nervous wreck like him to be. Reita felt his little hairs standing on end. Oh, no. Here it comes- 

“Reita, you shit! Haven’t you heard of what happened to Julius Caesar?! Ambition killed him! That’s right! You’re gonna get us all killed with your short-sighted antics! Can’t you just settle for what we have for once?! Be grateful for the simple pleasures?! Live like a normal, mindful human?!” Uruha pulled his hair, letting out a small cry of... what? Anger? Despair? It was always hard to tell with him, “I-I-I can’t deal with this! I-I-I’m gonna take your plums away! Purple was never my favourite colour, anyways! Not purple like plums, not red like strawberries, not yellow like bananas!” At this point, his eyes were twitching. 

Damn. Reita hated to see his best friend this way. Always so fragile, with the smallest of things. Maybe he should have skipped Uruha’s house. Nevertheless, he was kind of freaking out. He couldn’t let this guy ruin his plan!

“Uruha, please calm down! How can we get killed with me on our team? I won’t allow it!”

Uruha was already on his way out of the door.    
“As much as you think you’re a God, you’re just a human, Reita.  And who knows what _they_ are? You’re probably powerless.”

With that, his best friend was leaning down to pick up the plum. He was obviously somewhat drunk. Reita could see him almost lose his balance and fall flat on his face. Even though he eventually regained his balance, he still hesitated. His trembling hand stopped the moment it was just about to touch the fruit. A frightened expression appeared on his face. To Uruha, this was comparable to touching a mine in a minefield. But after three attempts at picking it up, he finally succeeded, relieved that it didn’t blow him up. 

“I’m going to start a fire. That’s the only way we can get rid of these fruits…” The unsure man’s voice came out more like a croak than anything. 

As much as Reita wanted to stop him, he knew it was futile. This would turn into a back and forth argument all freaking night. _As if_ he wanted to take part into any of that. Especially with someone he cared so deeply for. 

“You won this time,” Reita surrendered to his best friend, a sighing defeated tone to his voice. Uruha didn’t say anything. He was probably a little angry, of course. Instead of replying, he just continued what he was doing. He moved onto another house to uneasily pick up the rest of the plums. 

 

Reita couldn’t believe it. Was he ever going to get out of the bitter world? This wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair _at all_ , how they segregated babies at birth. If you had great genetics, and if you were healthy, you’d be sent to the sweet world in that glass dome. Over there, everything was...well, _sweet_. Happy, bubbly, and everyone was supposedly very kind. Not only that, but your diet consisted of sweet things, modified so that you’d never get sick from them. Nothing bitter at all. It was a place so perfect, with no illnesses as a bonus. It was as if they were trying to create a utopia; a perfect world. Like Shangri-La. 

However, if you had bad genetics, and if you were unhealthy, they’d send you over to the bitter world. That’s where Reita was forced to be, just because of his half-blindness. This place was complete trash. The air was thick and musty, the trees were dead, everything seemed moldy and dark. They were lucky enough for the soil to be healthy enough to plant things. But you could only eat bitter or unsweet things. Maybe that’s why everyone here had a bitter, asshole-ish side to them. Reita included-- he couldn’t deny that he was a bit arrogant and overly-ambitious at times. And Uruha...well, Uruha was riddled with some kind of obsessive compulsive disorder, and maybe even some emotional issues. He often had to do things three times, or say things three times. He was quite a wild card, and was hard to predict. But Reita still loved him. They’ve been good friends since they were kids, how could he _not_ love him? They shared so many great memories. One day, when they were much younger, they found themselves stuck in a rainstorm. They didn't exactly have homes at that time; they had nowhere to go. Everything was so cold and damp. Their bodies were literally shivering. Uruha was crying, and his sobbing made Reita’s heart feel like it was breaking in half. That’s when he realized that he just couldn’t deal with seeing Uruha so miserable. And so, he did what he was best at. He jumped in a puddle. Yep, that was all. He jumped into a puddle, splashed everywhere, and forced himself to laugh about it.

“This is hella fun!” he had exclaimed, with the realest voice he could, and a non-obvious fake smile on his face, “Come try it!”

Uruha was unsure at first. It would make him even more wet, wouldn’t it? Could he deal with even more rain on him? Would he be colder? Would the added wetness feel like spit on his skin? But seeing his friend laugh like that...he had to try it. And so, he ended up jumping into the puddle, too. Reita’s laughter must have been contagious, because within seconds, he was a laughing and smiling mess, too. They splashed each other, and danced like there was no care in the world. 

 

It was a bad day turned into a good one. Unfortunately, that couldn’t happen all the time. In this place, Reita found that there were too many bad days that he just couldn’t find a way to improve. Maybe he'd become more pessimistic over the years. The only hope he had left, he realized, was from that one stranger who always left him a gift every day from the other side. This had been happening for about two weeks now. He’d usually get some fruit or candy, which he would secretly stash and eat. It was so good; too good to waste; too good for his selfish ass to share with anyone for the longest time. Fit for a king. Another time, he got a gold pendant, in the shape of a four-leaf clover. He carried it around with him, as some type of makeshift charm for good fortune. 

Whoever was in that dome, Reita had to thank. Getting little gifts like these gave him something to look forward to each day. It gave him something to live for. But more than anything, it gave him more motivation to get the hell out of here. Even if he couldn’t convince the others, he himself had to escape. Everything seemed so much better inside that dome. There had to be a better way to live, right?

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAAH I don't even know where this idea came from?? Or how it'll go?? I'm basically just gonna wing this entire thing, 'cause that's how I go about living life.
> 
> Eyeliner wing, airplane wing, chicken wings  
> Wing everything in life and you'll be fine  
> Wing, wing, wing  
> Hello?
> 
> God I ramble too much sometimes


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eyyy! What's up?   
> You know what sucks? Not knowing what program to take in college! 
> 
> Oh well. I'm gonna stay positive! Everything always turns out okay. Here's a new chapter to this thing I'm apparently writing. :)

The next day, Reita woke up in his tiny home feeling a little… _different_? He didn't know if it was the atmosphere or what, but something tickled his stomach with what felt like the naïve and innocent happiness of a small child. Confused, he looked into his cracked, old mirror to reveal a man who was smiling. A man who he never thought could smile so much…and so brightly, too! Why was he so happy? Did the rising sun's rays suddenly seep into his whole body? Did someone plant a seed of happiness in his heart? Thinking too much like this was pointless, though. He always knew simply living in the moment was the best way to live. And so, he just continued on with his day, enjoying this new, lighter feeling that reminded him of a leaf floating in the wind. 

Reita decided against eating a bitter breakfast. That was the worst way to start the day. In his mind, bitter foods, such as disgusting asparagus, was the devil incarnate. They made him feel like an expired coupon. Instead, with an empty stomach, he literally skipped out of his house, as if he was playing hop skotch. Yup, he knew where his feet were taking him-- to that one place that always lit up his spirit! It was like that one rainbow on a rainy day, which wiped your tears away and reminded you that everything will be alright. But as he was making his way to the forest, he was immediately stopped by his buddy, Uruha, with a hand on his shoulder. He turned to face his friend, a big smile still plastered on his face. 

 

Uruha looked…quite awful, actually. Dare he say such a nasty thing about such a good friend? But it was true. His face was flushed pink, dark eyebags ducked under his hazel eyes, and his pale, lifeless skin looked like it really needed a pick-me-up. He was swaying a little, too, like a zombie. 

“I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorryyyy…about yesterday, Reiiii…” his cracked words were slurred, and his balance was so unsteady, it looked like he might be using Reita’s shoulder to keep himself from toppling over. “I'm such a piece of shit friendddd..! For destroying your dreams!”

Reita’s smile immediately fell. Down, into the dark abyss of a frown. Especially when he picked up the obvious smell of alcohol on his friend's breath. Also, was that a hint of marijuana coming from his clothes? Reita felt his heart sink down into his stomach. Almost every ounce of his morning happiness was shot. God dammit, his friend drank even more again! And he hit a joint, at the same time?? No wonder he looked like crap! 

“Uruha, snap out of it!” He exclaimed, literally snapping his fingers next to the drunk man's ear. At this point, Uruha was in tears, and he was completely slumping over onto Reita, as if the man was the only support for his entire body. 

Uruha groaned, “I feel really sick…like I'm gonna pass out…” He clung to Reita even harder, “I don't wanna pass out in such a shitty ass place…everything here is so lifeless...” he sounded like a whiny child, mumbling some more complaints. 

Although Reita felt  a little disgusted by his friend, and kinda angry at his careless behaviour, he wasn't such a dick that he would leave him behind. Actually, he felt the need to tend to him, no matter how much of a burden it was in his day. No matter if that guy smacked the agreeable morning smile right off his face. 

And so, he picked up Uruha with ease, slinging him over his shoulder. The friend hung helplessly, like a ragdoll. His wet tears stained Reita’s thin jacket, but Reita didn't mind. What a mess, his friend was. He wished he could do something more for him. Obviously, the weight of the bitter world was crushing him, and he felt like he could only turn to alcohol and drugs to make him feel better. But he took too much. Way, way too much. What a fool, Reita thought, as he was carrying the man to his own home. But Reita felt like a fool, too. For not being good enough of a friend to stop his best friend from killing his body with substances like this. 

Once he stepped inside of his own house, he did his best to push these negative thoughts away. Gently, he set Uruha down onto his own bed. The old, worn-out springs creaked under the weight.

“You can stay in my house,” Reita said, without admitting the real reason why. Unlike Uruha, Reita had no substance problems. Therefore, in his home, there was no trace of alcohol or drugs. There was nothing addictive that Uruha could try to get his hands on. It was the best place for him to be. “Get some rest, okay? Take it easy. You know I care about you.” He tucked his best friend into the blankets, and then sat on the bed.

As he did so, Uruha took a deep breath in, and quietly moaned, “These blankets smell like you…I like that.”

Reita decided to ignore that last comment. It was completely unnecessary and random. “There’s somewhere I need to be right now.”  he then abruptly stated, having to stop himself from getting up from the bed and leaving. The forest was calling him again. Yelling. He could feel it in his bones, which were vibrating with anticipation. “Is there anything else I can do for you before I go?” Truthfully, he was feeling pretty impatient. He wanted to go back to the dome as soon as possible. The anticipation of what kind of sweets he would find today was killing him inside. Subconsciously, his legs were fidgeting. 

“Yes, yes, yes. There is something you could do that would make me feel better,” Uruha added, making the antsy man internally scream. 

Without even thinking, Uruha reached his arms over, grabbed Reita, and then pulled him towards him. He forced Reita to topple down onto his own blanket-covered body. 

“Uruha, what are you-”    
“Fuck me,” Uruha weakly sobbed out. He roughly stroked Reita’s back. He sloppily planted, wet, nibbling kisses on his neck, feeling quite hysterical. Adrenaline was pumping through his body as he did so, like a machine. 

That's why he felt so damn disappointed that he couldn't even continue. After the first few kisses, the shock-frozen man finally managed to get off of his desperate best friend. Reita then stood up from the bed completely. He could barely believe what his ears just heard. He rubbed the spot on his neck that was kissed. 

“What did you just say?” He had to ask again.

“...Fuck me, Rei,” Uruha weakly repeated, desperately, “I'm serious. It would make me feel better if we made love again...like the old days. Please...”

Damnit! Was he kidding him? Or was his friend really, totally out of it?? “I’m not gonna do that, Uruha!” Reita sternly started, “That was in the past, when we were younger and stupider. We agreed to leave it in the past! We’re just friends. We shouldn’t be anything more than that.”

“Am I not attractive? Am I ugly, disgusting, revolting?” His best friend was crying harder now. It made Reita feel a little bad, but who was he kidding? They weren’t like that anymore.

“No, that’s not it. There’s no real thing between us, Uruha. There’s no potential for anything more than to be the best damn friends ever. And it's better that way!”

“But I want you.”

“No, you don’t! What you want is another damn feel-good tool to escape from your depressed reality! I don’t want that kind of quick-fling sexual relationship with you. And I doubt you do too-- you can’t even properly consent in this state, for crying out loud! Heck, you probably don’t even know what you’re saying!”

Uruha didn’t reply with words. He just continued to cry, turning onto his side, away from Reita. And then compulsively turning back to him. And then finally turning away from him for good. Reita knew that he had hurt Uruha, and that he probably wouldn't talk to him anymore for a while. Oh, well. 

“I’ll leave you alone now. Get some rest, okay?” He stroked Uruha’s back, before sighing, and then finally walking away. Before he left his home, though, he heard his best friend exclaim some words through his tears, probably more to himself than to Reita:

“I don’t want to be in this place anymore! It’s dull, and sad, and people are so negative! I don’t want to live this bitter life! If there’s a God, take me away! Take me away! Please, just take me away!”

Despite being lawful, Uruha definitely didn’t want this. He didn’t want this life as much as Reita didn’t want it. Of course. Nobody would agree to live in a place like this. With too much negativity, and not enough positivity, it always felt like you were going downhill. And no matter if you 'tried' to be positive, for some reason, something inside you just remained negative. Reita couldn't count the times that people were mean or spewing out negative things to him. They probably didn't mean it, but the bitterness of this place seemed to control people. He couldn't pry his eyes away from the grey ugliness of this polluted planet, no matter how badly he wanted to. 

Rebellion was always an option, in any bad situation. But Uruha completely refused to bend the laws. No matter what circumstance he was in. If only there was a way for him to escape without feeling like a criminal. 

 

Reita felt like he could finally breathe, once he was completely away from Uruha. He loved him, but the energy radiating off of him was so heavy right now, it was absolutely suffocating. And to mention the past like that? It just made him feel like crap. 

Once upon a time, the two friends had decided to try to become a couple. It didn't work that way. The realization hit them hard one day that what they had wasn't actually love, but just hormone-induced lust. Lust for the temporary feeling of pleasure that a sexual encounter could bring. Pleasure was so rare in this place, be it physical or emotional. A needle in a haystack. 

Reita didn't ever want to see his best friend as a toy, but their relationship had eventually developed into just that. Their visits turned from friendly, meaningful hangouts…to visiting each other just for a quick fuck. Nothing more; nothing genuinely real. It was sad. They had to stop, if they wanted to salvage their friendship. Reita wasn't so weak that he'd give up a long-term friendship for short-term pleasure, after all. 

Ugh. Not to offend, but everyone in this place had bad vibes like Uruha. It seemed like no matter what, people couldn’t be happy or optimistic here. 

And that’s why it was so important for Reita to have some hope. And all of that hope arose from the one, small hole in the glass dome.

When Reita arrived once more at his destination in front of the dome, he found himself absolutely paralyzed. Not out of fear, but out of shocking curiosity that struck him like lightning. On the ground, this time, there wasn’t only a piece of candy. The peppermint candy was taped to an accompanying piece of paper. Reita hastily checked his surroundings, before picking up the paper, detaching the peppermint, and then reading what was written. 

 

_"Good, beautiful, amazing afternoon, lovely!_

_ It took me a while to come to my senses, but no worries, time is plentiful! Make sure to make the very best of it, in this fine, wonderful world! _

_ Hahahah! Anyways, I was wondering if you could do me a little favour, honey buns! Could you slip through a bunch of… biiiiiitterrr… foods for me in that expertly chiseled hole? Enough to feed a cuddly, cutie patootie bear. _

_ Thanks! Many, many thanks! To you! My dear! :))))  Good day!» " _

 

_ -Ruru ❤️” _

 

Wow, was Reita ever taken aback by all of the energy in that letter. It was just oozing hyperactivity and child-like positivity. Was this really from the person inside that dome? _Ruru_. He doubted that was actually their real name. It sounded like something you would call a pet dog. Or a teddy bear. 

Nethertheless, this message left him quite speechless. To hold some words that he knew came from the person that he’d been basically worshipping for the past couple weeks. It was surreal. And exciting. Like getting an autograph from someone famous. He couldn't help but smile! 

What an odd request, though. Reita thought it was kind of ridiculous. Who would deliberately want some of those nasty, bitter foods? Who would want anything at all from this side of the world? Especially when they lived in such a sweet place. Reita was gonna do it, though; why wouldn’t he? He felt like he owed them a favour like that, after they’d been so consistent with giving him gifts. Popping the explosively delicious candy in his mouth, he headed back to his house. 

 

When Reita went to check, Uruha was thankfully fast asleep in Reita’s bed, quietly snoring. Despite it being the morning. He looked a lot better right now. A peaceful expression on his face, rather than emotionally disruptive tears. Reita hated how the ancient floorboards creaked under his footsteps; he didn’t want to wake him up. But he had to walk over to the small kitchen. That was where all his food was stored, of course. 

He quietly went to work in there, pulling out an empty potato bag from one of the cabinets, and then filling it with whatever he could spare. Asparagus, broccoli, amaranth, kale, dandelions. He didn’t have a lot; he doubted it would feed a bear like they had wanted. But it was still an armful. Hopefully enough for that Ruru person. He did as asked, and once he got back to the forest, he threw the contents of his filled bag into the dome’s hole. He watched it fall onto that perfect pink grass on the other side of the glass. It didn't belong there. It looked so goddamn out of place. 

He spent the rest of his day thinking about the paper note, unable to get it off his mind. And watching over Uruha, who truly needed his presence right now. 

 

Uruha woke up after a few hours. He felt a lot better, that was for sure. But he also felt really embarrassed. He remembered what he said to Reita earlier. He shouldn't have let himself get so drunk and high. How careless people are when they are under the influence. He couldn't believe that he expressed that he still had indecent thoughts about his friend. He felt like such a loser for not being able to let go of the lust and gladly stay as simple best friends. But the truth was, he missed the securing feeling of Reita making love to him. Those sleepless nights that weren't caused by insomnia, but mutual enjoyment. To be so close with someone, that it made him feel like he was never alone. And that maybe this bitter world could still contain true, unspoiled pleasure. Those days with Reita kept him sane. He'd been sexually attracted to the guy the very moment that hormones started flooding his body. It never went away, even after they'd agreed on stopping the whole friends with benefits thing. Nowadays, denying his still-lingering sexual feelings for Reita became another thing that was slowly killing him inside. He didn't want to be this way. Why couldn't he just give up and start seeing Reita as the simple, pure friend that he was supposed to be? Was he really that needy? He was also weak, he thought. He wished he could feel happy without clinging onto addictive things. Feeling utterly ashamed of himself, he got up, and then successfully tippy-toed past Reita, who was busy taking his afternoon nap. He'd better go back to his own house. He wasn't worth being such a damn burden to someone, after all. 

  
  
  



	3. Chapter 3

Don't get your hopes up too high, was what Reita had just learned. Six days had passed since he threw those bitter foods into the dome. That _do-me-a-favour_ letter was the last he had heard from the person on the sweet side. What was their name again? Ruru. Yeah. How _rurude_ of them to just stay silent now, after teasing him like that. He had thought that maybe they would finally be able to communicate. Or maybe meet each other. Or something! Even if it was as simple as becoming pen pals. But no, nothing. How damn disappointing! This world really was a sack of shit.

Reita didn't know why, but all of the sudden positivity he had previously felt was zapped. Ever since he started getting gifts from that dome, he'd been so much…happier? More positive? Just in general a way better person?! But after six days of no gifts or anything from Ruru, he felt like he'd reverted to the person he always used to be. Today, he was just as much of an aggressive asshole as he was months ago.

At least he still had Uruha. Guess that was better than nothing. Hey, where was that guy, anyways? He hadn't seen him since yesterday.

“Pssst! Psst! Psst! Rei!”

Speak of the devil, that was Uruha’s voice. But where? He stopped his daily walk outside, and turned his head in every direction, but no one was in sight.

“Reiiita! To your left, idiot! What are you, _half-blind_?!”

To his left? But there was nothing there but a big dumpster leaning against a worn-down produce store. He knew this area like the back of his hand. Was he just hearing things?

Suddenly, Reita felt something lightly hit his arm, then drop to the ground. He looked down to see the grossest, moldiest potato ever. Um, gross, no thanks. He scrunched up his face in disgust at it. Then, he looked up again to see Uruha, clear as day, standing up in the dumpster. He was laughing at Reita. “Your face when you saw that potato was pure gold!”

The fact that Uruha was in a dumpster should have been the most shocking thing to Reita. However, that momentary laughter was really what shocked him the most. He hadn't heard that guy laugh in a long time. He was always so depressed, and down in the dumps, no pun intended. Too bad he stopped his laughing after a few seconds, and then turned back into his normal, gloomy self.

Reita approached the dumpster, not even hesitating to ask, “What are you doing in here?”

Uruha shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, “I'm trash. Figured that this was the best place for me to be.” He had the most neutral tone, saying something so depressing.

"What?" Reita scoffed, "That's so stupid! The last thing you are to me is trash!" He truly meant this, and it hurt him that Uruha always felt so lowly of himself.

"You sure about that? I keep getting drunk like an idiot, I don't know how to control my compulsivity, and... I keep bringing up the worst things in conversations…" Uruha looked super guilty as he said the last one. He let himself sink a bit in the trash, probably thinking about the friends' past that he had wrongly brought up.

"Bitch, listen to me!" Reita had to stop himself from slapping Uruha’s face, "You're my ride or die! Stop thinking that you're anything less, or I think I might just kick your ass!"

Whatever Reita had just said caused the slightest, tiniest smile to appear on Uruha’s expression, "I kind of like it in here, you know. It might not smell the nicest, but it's peaceful. You should join me. Everyone who lives on this side of the world is basically seen as trash, anyways."

“Did you know that adding salt to a pineapple makes it taste sweeter?” Reita randomly added in, while taking off his favourite jacket so as not to get it dirty. Might as well join his best friend on his weird dumpster adventure. Who knows, it might make Uruha feel better. He’d try his best not to think of all the moldy stuff surrounding him.

“ _Huh?_ Rei, you’re so fucking weird sometimes.”

“And you’re quite possibly fucking insane. I think I’m the winner.” Reita said, before finally diving into the dumpster with Uruha. “If something salty can make something sweeter, doesn’t that mean there is some kind of hope for us here?” He’d like to think so. That experiment with a pineapple given to him by Ruru one day will forever stick into his mind, no matter how much of a selfish asshole he might become.

They spent the rest of the morning throwing trash at each other, chatting about the meaning of life, and struggling with trying to make fancy knots with carrot peels. Throughout the whole time, Uruha had to really hold himself back from wrapping his arms around Reita. Something was pulling him, it seemed, he had a constant desire to just kiss that beautiful man again, hard. It was as if there was a magnetic force pulling him to Reita. Why couldn’t his hormonal body just calm down for once? He hated himself for being so clingy to a friend who he knew he should just stay friends with.

 

* * *

 

Reita had been quite sure that he had given up on visiting the dome, seeing as there had been nothing at all for him for a while. However, after taking a quick bath to refresh his dumpster-diving body, he realized that there was still a sliver of hope inside of him. No matter what, he could not keep his bare feet from wanting to explore that dead forest again. This time, though, he was in for a real shock.

Because there.

 _Right_ there.

Sitting right next to the hole in the glass.

Was a person.

A _real-life_ person from the sweet side! Reading a book, with their back against a live tree.

Reita gasped. For a moment, he felt kind of dizzy, and disoriented. His heart was running a marathon. This was so surreal. He never thought he’d actually ever get to see someone from the sweet side in person! They were almost like…aliens! It took all of Reita’s effort to lift his heavy legs and approach the mysterious person.

They weren't paying attention to him as he approached, obviously too busy drowning in the storyline of whatever they were reading. Reita usually wasn't a chicken, but it took a lot of effort to speak up. He opened his mouth, just to close it again. Gulped, and then nervously tried again with much more success:

*Hey, there!" Damnit, it still came out sounding a little awkward! He subconsciously beat himself up for that.

The person jumped a bit, then lifted his head up from the book, to look at Reita through shades. Not only did they have shades covering their eyes, but they also had a scarf covering their mouth and nose. A beanie covered most of their blonde hair, and they were wrapped in a thin poncho, despite it being warm out. You could barely see them at all.

"Ah! You must be the fellow I had been reaching out to for a couple of weeks." The voice that came out was deep. Definitely, he was male. "I've been waiting for you here!"

"Wait...you're Ruru??"  Reita asked, in disbelief. Was this really the guy??

At the sound of his name, the short man closed his book, and stood up. He was kind of cringing, "Please, do call me Ruki instead! That Ruru thing was me embarrassing myself when my body pretty much composed of nothing but sugar." He shivered a bit.

Reita didn't know why, but knowing that _this_ was the guy who abandoned him for a week made his blood suddenly boil.

"You're lucky you're in that dome, _poncho man_! If you weren't, I'd punch you hard for suddenly becoming quiet for an entire fucking week!" He was fuming. Absolutely fuming, from his ears, probably!

Ruki stepped back, on instinct. "Woah, Woah! I am so sorry about that! Please excuse me!" He reached into his pocket, and then pulled out a wrapped piece of taffy candy. "Here, take this." He threw it over to the other side.

Reita caught it, tore the paper right off like a madman, and then popped it in his mouth and chewed it angrily. Within a few seconds, the fire inside his core was beginning to die down. After about a minute, it was completely extinguished. He was kind of confused. Why did he feel…so much better? In such a short amount of time, too.

As if Ruki could read minds, he answered Reita’s inner turmoil, "It's unfortunate how little balance there is in this world. Eat nothing but the bitter or salty foods, and you'll turn into a depressive monster. Eat nothing but the sweet foods, and you'll turn into a hyperactive, overly sweet child. It's as if we are being brainwashed! _I_ was brainwashed!"

Holy hell. It took him a while to proccess this information, but in the end, the man was right! It all made sense now to Reita. Why he felt so much happier after about a week of eating the sweets that were given to him. Why Uruha was always so heavily depressed and addicted, no matter what he did. Why everyone in the freaking village was a tired, grumpy zombie.

"I apologize for that letter…I'm so embarrassed! I put on all these things to cover up my identity, because I'm so super embarrassed. That Ruru guy wasn't who I am at all!" Ruki was becoming a little frantic.

Reita shook his head, "It's okay, man!" he felt as if he already really liked Ruki’s vibe, but all the cover-up accessories were just suffocating his vibe. "No need to cover up. Now that you are yourself, you better show me you. Before I start labelling you as poncho man forever!"

Ruki sighed in defeat, "Alright." He gestured his finger in a circular motion. "Turn around, please."

Reita did as told, and turned his back to _poncho man_. Oops, was he already starting to call him that? He laughed at this, perhaps more loudly than he should of. He then found himself staring at a grey bird that had four eyes. Typical for a bitter land that was basically swimming in years of destructive pollution. He wished he could have one of the bird's four eyes. It didn't need four. Reita only had one that actually worked, after all.

"I'm done…" Ruki said, a bit nervously. Obviously, his self-confidence was a bit lacking today.

When Reita went to face Ruki, his jaw actually dropped. How could this man hide all of his features, even for just a minute?? He was absolutely  _beautiful_! Fuck. His hair was thick and blonde, and looked amazingly soft. His eyes were the color of delicious, melting chocolate. His lips were really full, without any cracks. Who knew skin could be that flawless? And despite having quite a few feminine-looking features, his jaw was quite masculine. Oh, fuck, this guy was actually everything that Reita found physically attractive in a person. His looks made it easy to discard the fact that Ruki wore, like…way, way too much jewellery. Huge shiny necklaces that covered his whole chest, and probably at least eight different bracelets on each of his wrists. This wasn't going to end well at all!

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

Reita immediately blushed like an idiot, embarrassed that he was so obvious about his feelings. Damn, him. "No reason…" Was it hot in here or something?

"Well, now that I've shown my face, why don't you show me yours? That black mask isn't any better than the scarf I wore, you know."

Reita was confused for a bit. It took his fuzzy brain a while to remember that he always wore a mask over his face, which covered his nose, his forehead, and his blind eye. For some reason, he always felt more comfortable with it on. To take it off was scarier to him than his fear of insects. He shook his head, "No way!" Ruki's beautiful eyes narrowed, and quickly, Reita thought of something to change the subject, "How come it took you so long to come back? I missed you!"

Ruki smiled. Wow, his smile was so bright! Reita's knees felt weak, for some reason. "That's about how long it takes for your body to get used to a new flavour! Although bitter foods will make you rougher, you won't feel the effects until about a week of you eating them. After that adjustment week, the effects of the foods you eat will be pretty immediate." His smile fell,"I kind of just…struggled with adjusting to such a strong, ugly flavour. It made me sick, and I was nearly bed-ridden. But I knew I had to keep pushing through, if I wanted to be normal for once."

That also made sense to Reita, because he didn't start feeling super awesome until a few days into receiving sweets from the dome. But that made him wonder…why was there a hole in the thick glass in the first place?? And was there a way to make it _larger?_

Again, it was as if Ruki could read his mind. "Yes, indeed, I made that hole." Reita’s eyes immediately widened at this news. A tiny man like him, making a hole in such thick glass?! Reita couldn't even do it, and he was way bigger than Ruki.

"The human mind is mesmerizing," Ruki started, "If you believe that you can do something, one hundred percent, then you can do it. Why do you think some people can lift cars, while others are too afraid to lift fifty pounds? On a perfectly sweet diet, you become so optimistic, that your dreams can turn into reality in an instant. Because you believe, as strong as iron, that you can do anything, without any negative doubts hindering you."

Damn, this guy was not only attractive, but he was also super smart. Reita was beginning to think that he himself was dumb as a nail.

"So you're saying, if I really believed that I could, I could squeeze through that small hole and join your side?"

Reita laughed, "You'll need more sweetness than one taffy for that, hon." Like a vending machine, Ruki reached into the deep pockets of his pants, and pulled out as much taffy as he possibly could. It was a mountain full! And he dumped it all over to Reita’s side. "Eat _all_ of this. Avoid everything bitter, and come back tomorrow afternoon. I promise I'll be here again."

Reita was quick to nod his head in agreement. "Got it!" He was excited. The thought of getting out of the bitter side was his dream for the longest time! If he could do this, he felt as if he'd truly begin to live his life. The world would become a paradise! Plus, he'd be able to actually get closer to Ruki. He wondered what he smelled like. He also wondered if his hair was as soft as it appeared. And his skin?

Fuck. No, no! What was Reita doing, thinking of such things about a person he just met?? This was bad. He'd better leave now.

"I'm gonna get going now, then. See you tomorrow, Ruki!"

"I'll be here!"

It then occurred to Reita that he never properly introduced himself, or given his name.

"The name's Reita, by the way." he said, picking up all the taffy from the ground and shoving it in his jacket’s pockets.

"Good afternoon and goodbye, _Reita_."

Hearing his name being said by such a deep, beautiful voice made Reita almost choke on air. He had to go now, before he did something stupid.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I go to work today, I'm gonna be unnecessarily thinking about Reituki ♥  
> Because, you know...  
> I'm trash. Ehehehehe


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof! Not sure if any of you are following this work, but if so, I'm really sorry for the long wait! Life got super busy, due to having to balance work, catching up on school work, and applying to college.

Why were all the villagers such _damn_ jerkfaces? All Reita did was happily jog back home after his first meetup with Ruki, when someone deliberately tripped him. He crashed right into some dirt. Anger immediately pumped through his boiling veins when he looked up to see… _what was her name again?_ Oh, right _Misaki._ It wasn't even worth remembering her name because she was probably the meanest chick ever. She used to try to bully Reita as a kid all the time. But Reita didn't have it. He never did. He was too brash and aggressive, it just threw her insults right off track. But poor Uruha had it. He had gotten it bad. 

"Oh, Reita! I'm sorry! I saw you playing in trash like a demented twig this morning, and I thought dirt like you would enjoy getting even filthier! If that's even possible." Her tone of voice was so immaturely mocking. Like some sassy kid who didn't have any manners at all, despite this girl being in her early twenties. 

Reita roughly dusted himself off as he got back up, trying to maintain his composure, but ultimately failing. "Shut up! You think you're better than everyone, but the only redeeming quality about you is that your head would make a great soccer ball!" As he yelled this, he had to stop himself from actually kicking her. 

Misaki scoffed, "Why did I even bother talking to such a faggot? Any kind of interaction with faggots like you is as ugly and worthless as your stupid face."

Goddammit! Really? Bringing his sexuality in? Not cool.

"Got a problem with me finding out that I liked guys?" Reita huffed, feeling the fire inside if him build up faster by the minute. "You know that's what most people would call a good thing! Coming out of the closet like that, after so many years of confusion!" Reita didn't get hurt easily. But those words did hurt, because the topic was sensitive and very personal to him. 

Misaki's lips curved into an evil and confident smirk, and her eyes became heavy-lidded, "Gay or bisexual, both are equally disgusting, and I can't believe that I have to live in the same village as _not one_ , but _two_ of you! We weren't made to be that way, dumbass! I have no respect to you, _or_ your friend. Go to hell, _right now_. No use waiting when we all know that's where you homos are going in the end!" 

Oh, man! Reita was so ready to punt this bitch. His head was fuming, his fists were clenched as tightly as they could be. He couldn't deal with homophobia at all. That completely crossed the line for him. But this Misaki chick always used homophobia as a reason to bully Reita and Uruha, harder than anyone else.

Reita was so done with her. He was so done with _this_. And so, of course, he did end up hurting her. He kicked her right in both shins as hard as he could, causing her to fall right down just as he did earlier. The hilarious sight of her all dirtied up and whining about having just taken a bath…had Reita smiling in victory. She deserved it, oh yes, she did. 

"You old or something? Go back to this generation, you mentally old hag, where no one should even care about that stuff!" 

And then, bitterly, he just stomped away, not bothering to look back at her after he had mentally stored the awesome image of her being miserable. Yet, even though he had just won, he couldn't get himself to be all that happy. It was next to impossible to make the anger inside of him completely dissipate. He always had _such_ a bad temper. 

 

When Reita entered his shack of a home, he slammed the door so hard, one of the hinges fell off and landed on the splintering floor with a clank. This just made him feel even more frustrated. Damnit, he was getting violent again! He couldn't let himself become violent-aggressive. Not when his best friend was in shambles, and he basically had to act as the strong glue that held Uruha’s broken pieces together. But that _bully!_ And _Uruha_! And the fact that everything in the bitter world was _so damn ugly and mean_! Reita realized at that moment just how tough it was to deal with everything. His only light was...Ruki, and the promising taffies that he was given. 

That's right. He remembered about those. Taking the little taffies out of his pockets, he dumped them all onto his dining table. Reita was determined to down all of these candies by the end of the day! He'd let his anger fuel his attempt. 

But...hell, he couldn’t help but get a bit nauseous when he picked up the first taffy. He wasn’t usually one who thought a lot, but his mind raced on and on about this moment. Would eating this much candy really change him? If so, how much? Ruki had mentioned something about people’s personalities changing depending on their diet. Perhaps he should rethink this. He could barely handle even just the thought of becoming unrecognizable to a certain someone in his life. 

At that moment, Reita felt that his anger was finally extinguished. He'd have to eat these, though. No turning back. 

 

\--

 

The next afternoon, Ruki was sitting at his spot against a pink tree, patiently waiting for Reita to show up. He had been reading a book about foraging in nature, but now he found himself lost in thought. Although he didn't know much about that Reita guy yet, something inside Ruki really wanted to get to know him some more. He seemed…interesting. And quite ambitious. And maybe a little naive. But kind-hearted. If it weren't for him accepting so effortlessly to bring over some bitter foods, Ruki wouldn't have come to his truest senses. Reita was certainly worth spending his mostly introverted time to get to know. 

Speaking of Reita, was that him? Why yes, it was. Said man was happily skipping right over to Ruki right now. Interestingly, the light blonde hair stayed in place, no matter his movement, due to a heap of hair gel.

"Hey, bro!" Reita enthusiastically greeted Ruki once he got close enough to the dome, "That's right, you're a new bro of mine! I wish I could bro-hug you through that glass! Bro!" 

Ruki blinked. Uh-huh. Scratch everything he had just thought about Reita. At least for now. 

"Yo, fam! Why the long face? What's up, my man?!" 

Ruki pinched the bridge of his nose. God. No. Hell no. If there was one thing in the world that he couldn't deal with, it was idiots. And right now, Reita was acting like the worst kind of idiot. The type that talked like trash, couldn't even do any work, and didn't bother to wear a belt on their pants. Beyond annoyed already, Ruki sighed deeply, almost helplessly, "Tell me this, Reita. Do you have any idea about anything at all?" 

"Nope!" Reita mindlessly kept a big smile plastered on his face as he said this. 

Ruki just had to let out yet another sigh of despair. But he then reminded himself of all the candy he had given Reita the previous day. If he ate it all as he was told to do, then he would be a completely different person today. Yes, he'd be a dumber and stupidly happier version of himself. And that was exactly what was standing before him now. A dumb, happy Reita. 

Keep it together, Ruki. And guide this little, overhyped son of a bitch. As much as he was almost unbearable right now. Diva-mode on. 

“Reita, listen to me,” He snapped his fingers as he said this, as if the other was a cat. His numerous golden bracelets dangled on his wrists as he did so.

Reita’s eyes mindlessly followed the jewelry, “Ooh, shiny bracelets! Bling, bling, my dude! You’re loaded!” 

“Shut your trap, and listen, idiot!” Ruki was already exhausted, but he kept on going, because he knew that the man before him was not the real one, “Do you believe that you can squeeze through that hole in the glass?” He pointed to the hole in the glass dome. 

Stupid Reita only glanced at it quickly, before making up his mind, “Ohohohoh! Is this a bet?” 

Ruki sighed, deciding to play along, “Yes, yes it certainly is a...bet.” 

“Then hell yeah, I can! Who wouldn’t be able to? It’s so big! Just watch me, bro! You won’t believe your pretty eyes!” Reita said all of this super fast, and so confidently. Ruki had no doubt in his mind that the guy truly, one hundred percent believed that he could squeeze through that hole in the glass. Great. That was all he needed.

 

Reita ran with his bare feet in the opposite direction, far, far away from the dome, in order to get a stronger start. Then, he sent Ruki a confident smile from afar. Ruki’s heart fluttered a bit at that smile, which he quickly brushed off as anticipation and anxiety. No, it couldn’t be anything else right now. He awkwardly sent Reita a thumbs up, encouraging that dumbass. 

The thumbs up seemed to raise Reita’s already high confidence and ego through the roof. Letting out a war cry, Reita ran as fast as he could towards the dome, his body rushing with adrenaline. Somehow, defying pretty much all laws of physics, he catapulted himself up towards the hole. Like a mouse collapsing its bones, Reita somehow ended up on the other side of a hole that was impossibly small for his size. It happened so fast, Ruki didn’t even see how it even happened!

But there Reita was, now. On Ruki’s side. Right in front of him. Panting, and smiling from ear to ear like a champion. Reita pumped his fist in the air, excitedly, “Hahah! Hell yeah! That was awesome!!! Did you see that?! I’m such a champ! Level 99 boss!!!”

Ruki couldn’t help but laugh, and smile as wide as he could. Reita’s excitement was contagious! Did that guy just do that? Why, yes, he did just do that! He accomplished his goal to get to the sweet side, after what Ruki could only guess was a long and painful time! 

Ruki’s laughter was cut short, when all of a sudden, he was scooped up by a pair of strong arms, bridal-style. “I feel like a prince who just saved a princess from despair!’ He looked up to see Reita’s overly proud face. 

“Agh! What are you doing?!” Okay, Reita on too much sugar was officially way too egotistical!

“I'm a badass knight, and you’re the princess I just saved!” Reita exclaimed, looking down at Ruki in his arms, “You’re so small, it’s perfect!”

Ruki’s cheeks heated up real fast. He found himself blushing so hard at Reita’s comment, that his face almost hurt. “Put me down this instant!!” He was panicking now. And he felt so, very inferior, and humiliated...and hot, as if it were a summer day.  Why was he heating up so much?? “Put me down!!” He had to repeat, as Reita was still so damn full of himself. 

“Okay, okay!” Reita defensively gave in, setting princess Ruki down. On the pink grass. Pink. Grass. Pink grass!

 

The next moment, Reita was seen dancing all around the forest on the sweet side. Twirling, hopping, skipping. Breathing in the fresh, unpolluted air. His lungs thanked him, after years of abuse. His mind was absolutely ecstatic, after years of subtle depression. Right now, there was no better place to be! He felt free! Free as a bird! Everything was so beautiful and vibrant. It was like looking through a rainbow. Up in the beautiful, baby blue sky. The world was beautiful, like lanterns in the night. This, plus all the sugar he ate...Reita could not possibly be happier than he was right now!

 

Ruki simply watched him, chuckling to himself. He felt really proud of himself, because he knew that he was the cause for this man’s happiness right now. If he hadn’t started throwing random gifts on the other side, given away so much sweets, and guided Reita, then...then Reita would be exactly where he was before. Which Ruki could only guess made the man miserable. If only Reita knew, though. If only he knew that although this sweet place appeared to be the best place to ever live, it truly wasn’t. Not in the big picture, at least. Since eating some of those bitter foods, Ruki completely realized this fact. But he’d let Reita be today. There was no way that he’d disturb a man that was so happy, so joyful, and so...beautiful. Ruki smiled warmly, and very calmly sat down on the grass, as Reita continued to dance around the place like the happiest man on Earth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's a bit different, but do you guys like this so far? I hope you do! I've been pretty insecure about my writing skills lately 
> 
> Love you all. <3


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